bhensley

I have an 85' Wellcraft NovaXL, a previous owner had painted the hull sides on the boat and did a shady job at it so I'm getting ready to re-do the sides and am thinking of doing the white on the top cap while at it. My question is, there is the gritty textured non-skit on the bow deck. How do I go about painting that? Not sure how to prep it correctly w/ out sanding it and ruining the non-skid. Any suggestions would be helpfull. Thank's in advance.
Brandon

czy40p

I believe interlux and awlgrip both make additives to mix in the paint for grip. Fine medium and coarse. I just saw them do it on 'ship shape TV. Looks pretty simple the paint was actually put on with a roller.
jim

madbouyz

IS the existing non-skid surface in good enough condition to leave it alone ( tape/mask around) ?

True enough , Interlux and Awlgrip both make additives to turn their paints into a non skid surface, I'm sure they're both the same thing, just in different cans .

I've done it a few times and get a bit better each time. It does take practice and good prep/clean dry surfaces.

bhensley

The existing non-skid is in great shape. The only reason for wanting to redo the paint on that is because if I do the white on the boat I will go w/ a different shade. It now has kind of a grey tint to it and want it a little brighter white. Thanks for the advice guys. I'm taking it that if I use one of these products I should just sand down the existing non-skid and put new on? Thanks again.
Brandon

madbouyz

Yeah , I can see that you're between a rock and a hard place... i.e. it's only the colour that has you in this position..
Sometimes a very slightly contrasting non-skid area looks OK , but hey , were all boat owners who want things OUR way huh

Yes , when I did my prep for complete re-awlgrip I included machine sanding all the non skid areas too. It's very hard to eliminate the complete surface of the non-skid so you ought to be able to see where you're going after the re-spray.

If it was me , I'd powerwash the existing non skid before priming/etc to get out all dirt and oils. It's amazing how much stuff settles in there and it will interfere with the new finish's bond if you give it a chance .
Steve

bhensley

Yeah... the color is the only thing that is in the way here but with the advice from you fellas I don't think I'll have a problem with it. I do gel and paint repairs for a living, just never on a non-skid before. Just needed pointed in the right direction. I've been debating on re-painting this boat all summer. A few people i mentioned it to a work said it's a waste of time being it's an 85' Wellcraft NOVA but hey... It's all I can afford so why not make it look the best as possible. Hell, the only thing I'll have $$ into is materials, no labor as I'm doing all the work. I do appreciate all the help w/ this and also for not putting me down for wanting to re-paint a boat that still is only worth $8-9K. Now I see why this is a popular site. Thanks again.
Brandon Hensley

bhensley

I was thinking paint only because I will be re-spraying the hull sides and top-cap/deck w/ paint and just figured I would go w/ paint on the non-skid so the color is the same.

OK, new question now. Once i have the deck sprayed and the non-skid rolled on, should I clear the non-skid while clearing the deck around it? Sorry for all the questions but just want it to look right. Thanks again G.G.
Brandon Hensley

madbouyz

Personally , I'm against clearcoating (at least Awlgrip) unless your boat is trailered/fully covered or lives in a garage.

TO me it would make no sense clearcoating non skid as it is just another coat that has to bond to a surface that should be rough by nature .... the clearcoat will make it start to revert back to a slippery surface again as it fills in the rough surface that you deliberately created.

bhensley

I am planning on using PPG Omni paints and was only wondering about the clear because I don't want it(clear) to peel/flake off where It stops up against the non-skid. Or should that not be anything I should worry about? Sorry again for all the questions, just trying to learn another part of the trade.
Brandon